Skipjack Tuna at a Cannery

Skipjack tuna lays on racks at a cannery in the Maldives. The cannery is a fish processing plant operating to the strictest regulations of health and safety. The tuna canned here are caught with pole and line fishing practice, an old traditional technique which is selective and therefore a more sustainable way to catch tuna.

Unique identifier: GP01PIV

Type: Image

Shoot date: 06/10/2008

Locations: Asia, Indian Ocean, Maldives

Credit line: © Greenpeace / Paul Hilton

Ranking: ★★★★ (E)

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Sustainable Tuna Fishing in Maldives

The pole and line fishing method is a traditional old technique used by fishermen in the Maldives. Pole and line fishing is a selective and therefore more sustainable way to catch tuna as only fish of a certain size are caught, leaving juveniles to grow to spawning age and replenish the stock in the future. Small bait fish are thrown over the side of the boat to lure the tuna to the water surface. The fishermen use the acceleration of the fish as they race to get their prey, hook them and fling them onto the ship's flat deck. The Maldivian tuna fishery forms a sharp contrast to how most tuna is caught elsewhere with destructive methods like purse seine fishing.
Being one of the world's most favorite fish, tuna stocks are being heavily over fished around the globe.
The documentation includes one of the Maldive's own tuna canneries, located in Felivaru, in the north atolls, a modern fish processing plant operating to the strictest regulations of health and safety. Around 500 local people work in the plant, both fishing and fish processing are vital to the Maldives economy and provide crucial employment. Fish4Ever - distributed by Organico Realfoods in the United Kingdom - is one of the brands marketing the Maldivian pole and line tuna in Europe.

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Sustainable Tuna Fishing in Maldives (Photos & Videos)

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